Field of the Invention
The field relates generally to media input feed systems for an imaging device having a removable media tray with a media length sensing mechanism.
Description of the Related Art
Imaging devices utilize removable media trays for holding stack of media to be processed by the imaging device. The removable media tray is designed to handle a variety of different length media, such as A6, Letter, A4 and Legal media having lengths of 148 mm, 279 mm, 297 mm and 356 mm, respectively. To determine the length of the selected media, sensors may be provided in the removable media tray at each media length and then polled by a controller to determine the selected media length. Another approach is to use a bank of switches connected to a controller that are actuated by a series of levers that are controlled using a series of linear openings in a rectangular linear encoder plate. The encoder plate is translated by one end of a pivoting link, mounted to an undersurface of the removable media tray. The other end of the link is attached to the rear media restraint via a slot in the bottom of the removable media tray. As the media restraint is moved, the link pivots, in turn sliding the encoder plate. However, this mechanism is bulky and requires a large footprint within the removable media tray to accommodate the encoder plate and the pivoting arm.
It would be advantageous to have a mechanism that would allowing for media length sensing that is more compact than the prior art design. It would be further advantageous that the mechanism for operating the encoder or the switches be contained within the interior of the media tray.